1There is a God--all nature speaks,

See, from the clouds his glory breaks,

2The rising sun, serenely bright,

Inscribes, in characters of light,

3The flowery tribes, all blooming, rise

Their bright, inimitable dyes

Speak sweet conviction to the heart.

4Ye curious minds, who roam abroad,

Confess the footsteps of a God;

Give me the humble hope to claim

For thou art just, and good, and wise:

Still let me know a father reigns,

Yet shall my soul, believing, own

If thou accept my humble claim,

1Father! to thy kind love we owe

All that is fair and good below;

Bestower of the health that lies

On tearless cheeks and cheerful eyes!

2Giver of sunshine and of rain!

Ripener of fruits on hill and plain!

Fountain of light, that, rayed afar,

Fills the vast urns of sun and star!

3Yet deem we not that thus alone,

Thy mercy and thy love are shown;

For we have learned, with higher praise,

And holier names, to speak thy ways.

4In woe's dark hour, our kindest stay!

Sole trust when life shall pass away!

Teacher of hopes that light the gloom

Of death, and consecrate the tomb!

1'Twas God who fixed the rolling spheres,

Who formed the plan of endless years,

2From everlasting is his might,

He pierces through the realms of light,

3He darts along the burning sky;

Through worlds above his terrors fly,

4He speaks,--great nature's wheels stand still

The mountains melt; each trembling hill

5Ye worlds, and every living thing,

Pay grateful homage to your King,

1The Lord our God is clothed with might;

He speaks, and in the heavenly height

2Rebel, ye waves, and o'er the land

The Lord uplifts his awful hand,

3Ye winds of night, your force combine

Ye shall not, in the mountain pine,

4His voice sublime is heard afar;

He binds the whirlwinds to his car,

5Ye nations, bend; in reverence bend;

And bid the choral song ascend

1In all my vast concerns with thee,

To shun thy presence, Lord, or flee

2Thine all-surrounding sight surveys

My public walks, my private ways,

3My thoughts lie open to the Lord,

And ere my lips pronounce the word,

4O, wondrous knowledge, deep and high;

Within thy circling arms I lie,

5So let thy grace surround me still,

To guard my soul from every ill,

1Ere mountains reared their forms sublime,

Before the birth of ancient time,

2A thousand ages, in their flight,

Past, present, future, to thy sight

3But our brief life's a shadowy dream,

That fades with morning's earliest beam,

4To us, O Lord, the wisdom give,

That we at length with thee may live

1Beyond, beyond that boundless sea,

Farther than thought itself can flee,

Yet dear the awful thought to me,

2We hear thy voice when thunders roll

The waves obey thy dread control:

Where shall I find Him, O my soul,

3O, not in circling depth, or height,

Present to faith, though veiled from sight,

O come, thou Presence Infinite,

1Lord, thou hast searched and seen me through;

Thine eye commands, with piercing view,

My rising and my resting hours,

My heart and flesh, with all their powers.

2Within thy circling power I stand;

On every side I find thy hand:

Awake, asleep, at home, abroad,

I am surrounded still with God.

3Amazing knowledge, vast and great!

What large extent! what lofty height!

My soul, with all the powers I boast,

Is in the boundless prospect lost.

4O may these thoughts possess my breast

Where'er I rove, where'er I rest!

Nor let my weaker passions dare

Consent to sin; for God is there.

1How precious are thy thoughts of peace,

New every morn, they never cease;

In number and in compass more

Than ocean's sand, or ocean's shore.

2Search me, O God! and know my heart,

And warn thy servant to depart

So shall thy truth my guidance be,

In life and immortality.

1Father of all, omniscient Mind,

Its highest point what eye can find,

2If up to heaven's ethereal height,

In splendor there supremely bright,

3Thee, mighty God, my wondering soul,

Whose being circumscribes the whole,

4Thine essence fills this breathing frame;

Lights up our souls with livelier flame,

5To thee, from whom our being came,

Inspired with this exalted theme,

1Great God, how infinite art thou!

Let the whole race of creatures bow,

2Thy throne eternal ages stood,

Thou art the ever-living God,

3Eternity, with all its years,

To thee there's nothing old appears,

4Our lives through varying scenes are drawn,

While thine eternal thought moves on

His head with awful glories crowned,

And rays of majesty around.

And skies and stars obey thy word;

Eternal is thy kingdom, Lord.

There fixed, thy church shall ne'er remove;

And sing thine everlasting love.

1God is love; his mercy brightens

Bliss he wakes, and woe he lightens;

2Chance and change are busy ever;

But his mercy waneth never;

3E'en the hour that darkest seemeth

From the gloom his brightness streameth,

4He with earthly cares entwineth

Everywhere his glory shineth;

1The Spirit moved upon the waves

He spake the word, and light burst forth,

2At his command, the mountains heaved

Island and continent displayed

3The voice of God was heard again,

Appeared on every vale and plain,

4The word went forth, and vast and high

O'er all the earth and sea and sky;

1Above, below, where'er I gaze,

Traced in the midnight planets' blaze,

Whate'er is beautiful or fair,

Is but thine own reflection there.

2And when the radiant orb of light

Smote with the blaze, my weary sight

That ray of glory, bright and fair,

Is but thy living shadow there.

3Thine is the silent noon of night,

Whate'er is beautiful and bright,

Thy glory walks in every sphere,

And all things whisper, "God is here."

1How shall I praise th' eternal God,

Who can ascend his high abode,

2Those watchful eyes that never sleep,

His wisdom is a boundless deep,

3Speak we of strength, his arm is strong,

To him eternal years belong,

4He knows no shadow of a change,

Firm as a rock his truth remains,

1The heaven of heavens cannot contain

Yet he in humble hearts will deign

2Where'er ascends the sacrifice

Or on the earth, or in the skies,

3His presence is diffused abroad

Who seek the mercies of our God

1I sing the mighty power of God,

That spread the flowing seas abroad,

2I sing the wisdom that ordained

The moon shines full at his command,

3I sing the goodness of the Lord,

He formed the creatures with his word,

4There's not a plant or flower below,

And clouds arise, and tempests blow,

1Is there a lone and dreary hour,

When worldly pleasures lose their power?

My Father! let me turn to thee,

And set each thought of darkness free.

2Is there a time of rushing grief,

Which scorns the prospect of relief?

My Father! break the cheerless gloom,

And bid my heart its calm resume.

3Is there an hour of peace and joy,

When hope is all my soul's employ?

My Father! still my hopes will roam,

Until they rest with thee, their home.

4The noontide blaze, the midnight scene,

The dawn, or twilight's sweet serene,

The glow of life, the dying hour,

Shall own my Father's grace and power.

1Almighty Former of creation's plan,

Faintly reflected in thine image, man;

Holy and just,--the greatness of whose name

Rules and supports this universal frame:--

2Whose spirit fills the infinitude of space,--

Who art thyself thine own vast dwelling place;--

Soul of our soul, whom yet no sense of ours

Discerns, eluding our most active powers:--

3Encircling shades attend thine awful throne,

That veil thy face, and keep thee still unknown;

Unknown, though dwelling in our inmost part,

Lord of the thoughts, and Sovereign of the heart!

1There's not a star whose twinkling light

And cheers the solemn gloom of night,

2There's not a cloud whose dews distil

And clothe with verdure vale and hill,

3There's not a place in earth's vast round,

Where skill and wisdom are not found;

4Around, within, below, above,

There Heaven displays its boundless love,

1Eternal Wisdom, thee we praise;

While with thy name, rocks, hills, and seas,

2Thy hand, how wide it spread the sky!

Tinged with a blue of heavenly dye,

3Thy glories blaze all nature round,

Through skies, and seas, and solid ground,

4Almighty power, and equal skill,

Our souls with vast amazement fill,

Thy sovereign bounty is the spring,

A thousand obligations bind

My God! thy benefits demand

Let all my powers to thee aspire,

1High in the heavens, eternal God!

Thy truth shall break through every cloud

2Forever firm thy justice stands,

Wise are the wonders of thy hands;

3Thy providence is kind and large;

The whole creation is thy charge,

4Life, like a fountain, rich and free,

And in thy light our souls shall see

1Great God! in vain man's narrow view

Attempts to look thy nature through;

Our laboring powers with reverence own

Thy glories never can be known.

2Not the high seraph's mighty thought,

Who countless years his God has sought,

Such wondrous height or depth can find,

Or fully trace thy boundless mind.

3And yet thy kindness deigns to show

Enough for mortal minds to know;

While wisdom, goodness, power divine,

Through all thy works and conduct shine.

4O, may our souls with rapture trace

Thy works of nature and of grace:

Explore thy sacred truth, and still

Press on to know and do thy will.

1Through endless years thou art the same,

Each future age shall know thy name,

2The strong foundations of the earth

By thee the beauteous arch of heaven

3Soon may this goodly frame of things

Be, like a vesture, laid aside,

4But thy perfections, all divine,

Through everlasting ages shine,